Few know that poverty is falling

The fight against poverty, which has been very successful so far, is failing in one area - people's knowledge and attitudes. 74% of Swedes believe that the proportion of people in extreme poverty is the same or higher today than 20 years ago, despite the fact that the proportion has more than halved. Furthermore, 80% of Swedes believe that it is unlikely that poverty can be eradicated by 2030, according to a global survey presented by Oxfam today.

The survey, called Glocalities, was carried out by the Dutch research company Motivaction, which questioned 26 000 people in 24 countries. Despite the low results, the Swedes stand out among the industrialized countries as having by far the best knowledge of poverty reduction. In Germany, the United States, Italy and Spain, for example, over 90% of respondents believed that the proportion of poor people had increased or remained stable.

In China, on the other hand, where poverty reduction has been significant, awareness of this was also higher. 50% of Chinese believed that poverty had been reduced by 25% or 50% over the past 20 years.
The greatest optimism about the future was found in developing countries. In Indonesia, for example, only 22% thought it was unlikely to achieve the goal of eradicating poverty, i.e. about a quarter of the number of Swedes with the same view.

The proportion of people living below $1.90 a day, the extreme poverty line, has fallen from 29.7% of the world's population in 1996 to an estimated 9.6% in 2015. This is according to World Bank data. Last year, world leaders adopted the 17 new global goals for 2030. Goal number one is to end poverty in all its forms everywhere.

"The drastic reduction shows that the goal of eradicating poverty is achievable, but it requires awareness of the success and public optimism and engagement. There are many threats to the poverty target going forward, such as uneven growth and inequality, but also the effects of climate change, which will hit the poorest hardest."

Robert Höglund, Communications Officer Oxfam Sweden.

Motivaction International conducted the Glocalities survey on values, lifestyles, opinions and trends in 24 countries between December 2015 and February 2016. The survey was supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Motivaction has partnered with Oxfam and the Global Citizens organization to help shape corporate anti-poverty work.